Winter Storm Outlook

[CaptinCrunch]

Winter Storm Outlook
9AM EST, December 15, 2003

A couple storms will be on the map this
week with a wide area from the Rockies
to the east coast being affected.
The first storm was developing in the
central Rockies on Monday and will
track northeast toward the Great Lakes
by Tuesday night.

A wide area from the central Rockies
through the northern and central Plains
into the Great Lakes and Ohio Valley
will receive light to moderate snow
amounts with this storm, but that will
not be the main story.

As the storm intensifies, winds of 20 to
30 mph with higher gusts are expected
to blow across the Plains and into the
upper Mississippi Valley causing
blowing snow and very poor visibility
Monday afternoon into early Tuesday.
This will spread toward the eastern
Great Lakes and eastern Ohio Valley
by Wednesday.

As the storm moves into the Great
Lakes, a secondary coastal low will
develop in the southern mid-Atlantic
Tuesday night. This coastal low
expected to quickly become the main
storm as it rapidly intensifies and
moves up the east coast toward
northern New England by Thursday.
Unlike previous coastal storms that
have moved up the east coast, this one
will not be preceded by a Canadian
high pressure and an associated cold
air mass.

Thus, most of the precipitation is
expected to fall as rain with the snow
potential confined to inland areas from
the central Appalachians to upstate
New York and northern New England.
Where snow does fall, strong winds are
again expected to cause blowing and
drifting and poor visibility.

Another system is expected to move
inland across western Canada on
Thursday and dive into the upper
Mississippi Valley on Friday. This storm
is not expected to have a lot of moisture
but it is expected to produce all snow
with a very cold air mass in place.